Communications networks generally have limited resources available for delivering assets such as advertising, public service announcements or other content. In some cases, due to these limitations, it may be necessary or practical to favor some asset delivery opportunities (ADOs) but not others. Which ADOs are supported in such cases may be based on an analysis of the resources and ADOs, on an opportunistic basis (e.g., “first come-first served”), or some other basis. Allocation of resources based on an analysis of the resources and ADOs is generally preferable, provided that sufficient information is available concerning the resources, the ADOs, and some system of valuation for the ADOs. Unfortunately, the information that is available at the time that decisions concerning asset allocation are made is sometimes incomplete or inaccurate.
Those difficulties can be illustrated by considering the example of allocating assets to support targeted or addressable advertising in a broadcast network such as a broadcast television network. In such contexts, limited resources, such as dedicated in-band resources or dedicated asset channels, may be available for delivery of addressable assets. The addressable assets may be substituted for a default asset to better match assets to targeted audience segments. For example, a user equipment device (e.g., a set top box or television) may be controlled to switch to a selected asset channel during a given break of a programming channel to deliver an asset matched to the current user (e.g., viewer) or users. It will be appreciated that there are generally practical limitations on the bandwidth that is available to provide addressable assets. As a result, there may not be sufficient resources available to support all possible ADOs as defined in relation to the programming channels and/or audience segments that could be supported. For example, in a given network, it may be anticipated that potentially overlapping ADOs (e.g., advertising spots) may occur on each of four programming channels during a time window being managed. Further, it may be desired to deliver ten addressable assets in connection with those potentially overlapping ADOs. In this case, if resources are only available to support delivery of six assets to support the ADOs, it is apparent that not all possible assets can be delivered if the ADOs in fact overlap.
Resource allocation is further complicated in certain contexts due to the nature of the assets and the uncertainty concerning when ADOs will occur. Considering again the case of broadcast television networks, the entity/system making decisions regarding resource allocation may not know when a commercial break (generally including one or more asset spots) is going to occur until shortly before the break. Moreover, it is generally unacceptable to interrupt an asset after it has begun, and an asset may typically last for 15 seconds to a minute or more. Consequently, a decision may need to be made concerning resource allocation for a first ADO of a time window (e.g. a time segment being managed for resource allocation purposes) before the total number of ADOs occurring at least in part in the time window is known.